J’ai trouvé un emploi!!!

Another piece of the puzzle is in place…. I have successfully secured employment!!! Thank you to Marie-T and my expanding resource of global connections and support!

Last week I was encouraged to apply for a teaching position with a company in Lyon that offers language instruction to business professionals. In my best English I sent off an email of interest and within a couple of hours received a reply asking for my CV and cover letter. A few hours after emailing my info I received a call from my new boss, again in English ;) and was offered a formal interview on Tuesday Nov 23/10!

Tuesday morning, finally dressed in something other than jeans, I waited at the first of 2 bus stops…. And of course being one of three people at the stop, the other French girl had to turn to me (the French girl who does not speak French) and ask if I knew anything about a strike happening that day?!?!? Um, what, strike, I have an interview to get to and… wait, I don’t speak this language yet…. Ahhh, why didn’t she ask the nice looking guy to her left??? So I replied in my most convincing French, “je ne sais pas”, with an exaggerated expression of confusion since the French seem to be more animated and expressive in their communication which I have picked up without reservation! If you thought I spoke with my hands a lot before (blame it on my Italian heritage) you should see me now…. Not only do I use my hands to speak but I also have to act out and demonstrate most of what I am trying to say since I don’t know half of the words ;)

Manifestation (strike/demonstration) or not I was on the first bus without delay. Good thing I had a valid ticket for the bus because when I got off the first bus to board the second the French transit police were verifying all tickets… and of course… my ticket had to beep and reject from the scanning machine twice… great, now I have to try to explain that my ticket is valid in French… but lucky me!!! the nice transit police man just turned over the ticket to verify that the date imprinted on the back was from today and a language disaster moment was avoided!

Bus #2… I boarded the second bus at the last stop before turning around to head back in the opposite direction. Of course, again… the bus driver asks, “Où allez-vous?” And I, in panicked French, as I knew the direction I wanted to head in but did not know the exact stop by heart fumbled with the name of the street; but I think I came across as an authentic Lyonnaise because before I could mumble out the full street name (Blvd Yves Farge) he was off asking the same question of the next patron.

And alas, I arrived without further interruption to my interview! Forty-five minutes later I was submitting copies of my banking information and national identity card and confirming training start times for this Friday! Et voilà, je suis employée! I am now an official English teacher and will be teaching business professionals business English!!